Apocalypse now: How the end times went mainstream

It’s no longer just the Church that prophesies the end of the world; scientists, academics and journalists are also warning of existential threat. So how should Christians respond to widespread secular fears of Armageddon?

In January, the ‘Doomsday Clock’ – so-called because it reflects the likelihood of a human-made global catastrophe – was set to ‘90 seconds before midnight’, the closest it has ever been to annihilation since this metaphorical countdown began in 1947.

Anxieties about the Russian invasion of Ukraine and the ensuing proxy war between nuclear powers has resulted in widespread pessimism and fear of impending doom. Arriving on the coat-tails of a pandemic that wiped out millions, it’s little wonder existential angst is in the air.